What will happen at Trump-Putin meeting? Moscow to push Ukraine to cede territory, US likely to back, Kyiv to oppose
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What will happen at Trump-Putin meeting? Moscow to push Ukraine to cede territory, US likely to back, Kyiv to oppose Photograph: (Reuters)
Trump and Putin will meet on August 15 in Alaska to discuss a peace proposal involving Ukraine ceding territory, with partial Russian troop withdrawals from Kharkiv and Sumy in exchange.
US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are set to meet on 15 August in Alaska to discuss a controversial peace proposal that would see Ukraine give up more territory to Russia, the Kyiv Independent reported.
According to a source in Ukraine’s President’s Office, Putin presented the plan to Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, during a meeting in Moscow earlier this week. Under the proposal, Kyiv would pull its forces from two partly occupied regions, Donetsk and Luhansk. In return, Russia would withdraw its troops from parts of Kharkiv and Sumy oblasts in Ukraine’s northeast, where its forces currently hold limited territory.
Moscow’s demands in the south
The source told the Kyiv Independent that Putin also indicated Russia would accept the current front lines in southern Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, where Moscow controls most of the land but not the regional capitals. Ukraine, however, has no intention of accepting such terms. “Who would even give the military such an order to withdraw?” the official said, calling it a Russian plan disguised as a peace offer. “The Russians are now trying to spread the word that we are rejecting ‘Trump’s wonderful plan,’ but the thing is that it’s the Russians’ plan, territory in exchange for a ceasefire.”
Trump signals support for ‘territory swap’
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Trump’s quick announcement of his upcoming meeting with Putin has led some in Kyiv to believe Washington has “de facto” agreed to consider the proposal. On 8 August, hours before confirming the meeting, Trump told reporters that a peace deal could involve “some swapping of territories”. He said, “Well you’re looking at territory that’s been fought over for three-and-a-half years… We’re going to get some back. We’re going to get some switched. There will be some swapping of territories to the betterment of both.”
Zelensky rejects giving up any land
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded firmly on 9 August, saying the country’s borders are protected by its constitution. “No one will deviate from this, and no one will be able to. Ukrainians will not gift their land to the occupier,” he declared. He stressed that peace must be “dignified” and urged Kyiv’s partners to respect that principle.
Diplomatic flurry ahead of Alaska talks
The Kyiv Independent reported that senior officials from Ukraine, the UK, the US, and the EU are due to encounter in London on 9 August to prepare for the Trump–Putin talks. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed the gathering after speaking with Zelensky.
In recent days, Zelensky has held calls with leaders from the UK, France, Denmark, Estonia, and the EU. A diplomat from one G7 nation told the Kyiv Independent that “there are a lot of discussions happening right now.”
Russia’s territorial control
Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 and declared four more Ukrainian regions, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, as its own in 2022 after launching its full-scale invasion. These moves have been widely condemned internationally. As of August 2025, Russia holds almost all of Luhansk Oblast, over 70% of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, and controls Donetsk city. Its current offensive is focused on capturing more of Donetsk, particularly the cities of Pokrovsk and Kostiantynivka.
